Apple Plans Steps to Prevent Future App Store Attacks

A senior Apple executive on Tuesday said the company would make it easier for Chinese app developers to download its tools for building mobile apps in a bid to prevent further attacks on its App Store.

In the wake of the first major breach on its outlet for distributing iPhone and iPad software, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller told Chinese news site Sina.com that it will offer domestic downloads within China of its software for developing apps.

He made the comment after Apple on Sunday confirmed that the App Store had suffered its first large-scale breach. Unknown hackers infected legitimate programs by persuading app developers to download a tainted copy of the toolkit. It was the first time a company executive has talked about efforts to secure the App Store since the attack surfaced late last week.

Chinese app developers have told Reuters they resorted to downloading the tainted software kit for developers from unofficial, third-party sources because of slow speeds downloading from Apple's official servers located overseas. Many complained the U.S. tech giant should do more to support developers in the company's second-biggest market.

Schiller also said that Apple plans to list 25 tainted apps that the company has identified so that customers can delete and update them, according to the Chinese-language site.